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We'll continue our study through
the book of Jude. We've had a little bit of a break
there as we've started into 1 Corinthians. It was a while back where our
schedule kind of got messed up and we weren't able to finish
off that book, so we're returning to that. So we begin in Jude
17. through 24. This is the end of
the book. It's a short letter, so there's
only, you know, if there was a chapter, it'd be one chapter.
So we're in just verse 17 through the end in verse 24. I'll read
that. If you would go ahead and stand with me and we'll read
the word together. Jude is just before Revelation. But you must remember, beloved,
the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They
said to you, in the last time there will be scoffers following
their own ungodly passions. It is these who cause divisions,
worldly people devoid of the spirit. But you, beloved, building
yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy
Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the
mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life, and
have mercy on those who doubt. Save others by snatching them
out of the fire, to others show mercy with fear, hating even
the garment stained by the flesh. Now to him who is able to keep
you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence
of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior,
through Jesus Christ, our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion,
and authority before all time and now and forever. Amen. You may be seated. Well, if you remember Jude's
purpose in writing, that's back in verse three. Beloved, although
I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation,
I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for
the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. Contend
for the faith, that is to defend it, uphold it. The faith, which
has both content, doctrinal, but also conduct. This letter
has actually focused more at this point in time on the conduct
of the faith. He has gone above and beyond
by pointing out false teaching, false teachers, I should say,
that deny the faith, deny their Lord by their works, by what
they are doing. That is to say that the true
gospel has a content, a message, but it also results in a life,
a conduct, and that needs to be defended. So he has gone throughout
the letter showing by using figures from the Old Testament how these
false teachers align perfectly with those of old. He goes through
the hall of shame, essentially, of the Old Testament. He talks
about the first generation of Israel. They were destroyed in
the wilderness. He talks about the fallen angels
who didn't keep their place of authority. He talks about Sodom
and Gomorrah. He talks about Cain who killed
his brother and Balaam who, for greedy for gain, led Israel into
sexual immorality and idolatry. And he continually just says,
hey, these people right here, They're just like them. They're
just like them. He does it in verse 8, 10, and
16. Verse 8, Yet in like manner these people also, relying on
their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme
the glorious ones. Verse 10, But these people blaspheme
all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all
that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively. And
then in verse 16, these are grumblers, malcontents following their own
sinful desires. They are loudmouthed boasters
showing favoritism to gain advantage. And he says even Enoch spoke
of these type of people on rank ungodliness that will ultimately
be judged. What was the outcome of this
manner of life? It was destruction because it
is not the true faith. The true faith is the good news
of what Christ has done on our behalf, both in his death and
resurrection, crediting his righteousness to us and dying the penalty for
our sins so that we could be forgiven and receiving the Holy
Spirit, which then results in a life of godliness. unlike these false teachers."
And so Jude says, you know, I wish I could write to you about our
common salvation, but I need to address this issue. This is
off, this is wrong. And so he takes 16 verses to
just negatively show, you contend for the faith by recognizing
the wrong living. Say, that's not the true faith.
But in verse 17, he shifts more towards the positive instruction.
Contendent for the faith, yes, by recognizing the wrong way
to live, but then by also living this way, perseverance in the
faith. So here in Jude, we get clarity
as to how do we not end up like these folks over here who he's
mentioned. who just are corrupt and enslaved
to sensuality and their own passions and evil, corruption, greediness,
gain. How do we not end up like them?
Well, he says over here, persevere in the faith. And I know if you've
been a thinking Christian for a while, you're wondering, how
does this work? Perseverance, is it all just me? Is it just
me kind of mustering this out? I need to do the right thing.
I need to make sure I'm reading the Bible. I need to go to church. And it's
just me kind of obeying. How does this fit with salvation
when it seems like salvation is all of grace and it's communicated
over and over? It's all grace. By grace, you've
been saved through faith. This is not your own doing. It's
the gift of God. So initial salvation is us, is
God and his grace. But to make it to the end, it's
all us. No, no, no, no, no. Judy's going to provide the clarity
we need. And it's by two words, perseverance
and then preservation. And both those concur together
that we persevere, but it's God who's preserving us. and he uses
the means to that. So big idea today is that the
beloved persevere and are preserved concurrently. So we're gonna
look at two concurrent realities for the beloved. One, we persevere,
that's in verses 17 through 23. And then verse 24, God preserves. So we persevere and God preserves,
and those things concur together. So first, concurrent reality,
we persevere. Verse 17. We first persevere
by remembering. Look at verse 17. But you must
remember, beloved. Well, who's the you? Well, that's
what it says in verse one. To those who are called beloved
in God, the Father, and kept for or by Jesus Christ. He's saying, you must remember
beloved, but keep in mind who the you is. They're beloved,
not just by Jude, but by God. They've been called, as we've
learned in Romans, because they were first foreknown. Those whom
he foreknew, he predestined, and those whom he predestined,
he called. So they have been loved by God
and then because of that have been called, that is effectually
by the Holy Spirit to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. And
then verse one says, and you are kept by Jesus Christ. Well,
what are they to remember? It says the predictions of the
apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you in the last
time there will be scoffers following their own ungodly passions. Don't
be surprised. Remember what they've told you
all along. Remember Acts 20, Paul speaking
with the Ephesian elders, he's very clear. He says, know that
after my departure, fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing
the flock. And from among your own selves
will arise men speaking twisted things to draw away the disciples
after them. Therefore be alert. We could even just turn back
a page or two to 2 Peter. Peter says, knowing this first
of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing,
following their own sinful desires. In the last days, that is from
the time of Christ coming to the time when he returns, there
will be scoffers, there will be mockers, there will be people
giving over to sinful desires. Don't worry. This was all predicted
and you were warned of it. Don't give in. So remember. It
is these now, as he has been doing throughout the letter,
he attaches predictions or older people to people, it's verse
19, it is these who cause divisions, worldly people devoid of the
Spirit. Now that's interesting. Divisions,
Paul warned of that in 1 Corinthians, let there be no divisions among
you, be united in the same mind, same judgment. But it's interesting
he calls them worldly people for divisions. Worldly people.
That's what people outside of the church do. Remember the church
is a reconciled group of believers who live as one family together. Whether it's a Jew, Gentile,
rich, poor, slave free, we're all one in Christ Jesus. So divisions? Separation? That's not right. In fact, he even says they're
devoid of the spirit. Why? Because Paul says even in
Ephesians 4, I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling
to which you have been called with all humility, gentleness,
patience, bearing with one another. All those fruit of the spirits
there. eager to maintain the unity of
the Spirit in the bond of peace. The Holy Spirit allows us to
actually get along and not have divisions and work through our
differences and provide forgiveness. So if somebody is continually
stirring up division with no desire for unity in the body,
it's quite possible they are devoid of the Spirit. To this
first point, we persevere by remembering. Don't be surprised,
be warned, be ready. We persevere by remembering,
but also by keeping. Look at verse 20. But you, beloved,
building yourselves up in the most holy faith and praying in
the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for
the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. Now,
I say keeping as the center because this is the only imperative in
this verse. You have three participles which
support That one imperative, keeping. So you keep yourselves
in the love of God, which sounds strange in one sense, but we
know Jesus said something very similar. As the Father has loved
me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep
my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept
my Father's commandments and abide in his love. So we abide
in Christ's love by keeping his commandments, but that then gets
fleshed out even fuller by this term, building. Building yourselves
up in your most holy faith. That is language that we saw
in Ephesians 4, that we are an edifice or a building being built
up. When everything's working together
rightly within the body, we're built up into this holy temple
into the Lord. Think of the body image. We usually
think, okay, that's just arms, body. But Colossians says that
all the fullness of God dwells bodily in Christ Jesus. The image
there is of a temple and we being united to Christ are then part
of this temple of which Christ is the head and we are being
built up in your most holy faith. Build yourselves up and notice
that is corporate. Yourselves is in the plural there.
This is a corporate endeavor. How do we persevere? We build
ourselves up in the most holy faith, both content and the conduct. Notice also then, he says, that secondly, we are praying,
praying in the Holy Spirit, it says. Paul says something similar. In Ephesians 6, verse 18, praying
at all times in the spirit, because someone will confuse this and
say, OK, this is praying in tongues, praying in the spirit. That's
a holy language that you speak with God. No, this is praying
prayer that is not only motivated and made able through the Holy
Spirit, but also in accordance with his will. So John was in
the spirit on the Lord's Day, I think that was in prayer. So
we pray, that's how we persevere, but then also waiting, this is
the third participle, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus
Christ that leads to eternal life. This waiting is hope. Hope
in the reality of the coming of Christ, which Paul says in
other places, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day
of God, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory
of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. We persevere by remembering,
by keeping, but also by reaching. This comes out in verse 22 through
23. Reaching, reaching out essentially.
It seems an interesting way that Jude goes here, but he's basically
saying you need to reach out to those who are in error. And this has an effect upon you
as well. I don't know if you all have
ever shared the gospel with someone, but that is somewhat of a spiritually
invigorating experience where, I don't know if you've been like
me, but sometimes I'm like, yeah, I actually really believe this
because I'm willing to tell this person the good news that they
might not like and that might also create some awkwardness.
But I, out of love for God, wanting him to receive glory and love
for my neighbor, am going to do this. And so he says in verse
22, and have mercy on those who doubt. No doubt people in this
congregation or whatever were being tempted to be lured by
false teachers, by their lifestyles, the freedom that they supposedly
stated. And there might be people wavering.
Well, have mercy on those. Reach out to them. And verse
23 says, save others by snatching them out of the fire. It's difficult
to know if it's not just the same person. Have mercy on those
who doubt and save them by snatching them out of the fire. This is
a difficult textual issue that many commentators can get in.
I'm fine with the way the ESV does it, they see three groups
here, have mercy on those who doubt, save others by snatching
them out of the fire, to others show mercy with fear, hating
even the garment stained by the flesh. Save others by snatching
them out of the fire. People are perishing, and especially
if they're wrapped up in false teaching. You can, by speaking
the truth and love to them in God's grace, using you as an
instrument, bringing people out of the fire. And you can't help
but think that Jude here is thinking of that wonderful scene in Zechariah
chapter three. Because he uses the same language
of Joshua, the high priest. And both of these fit really
well with Zechariah chapter three, because when it says there, garments
stained by the flesh, listen to Then he showed me Joshua the
high priest standing before the angel of the Lord and Satan standing
at his right hand to accuse him. And the Lord said to Satan, the
Lord rebuke you, O Satan. The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem
rebuke you. Is not this a brand plucked from
the fire? And that language is that Joshua
has been brought out of exile. He's been saved. He's been forgiven.
And Satan here is accusing him. Look at his stained, dirty clothes,
which those clothes represented sinfulness and corruption. Here we see he's a brand plucked
out of the fire and a beautiful picture as the verse continues
of the gospel. Now Joshua was standing before
the angel clothed with filthy garments and the angel said to
those who were standing before him, remove the filthy garments
from him. And to him, he said, Behold,
I have taken your iniquity from you and I will clothe you with
pure vestments. And I said, Let them put a clean
turban on his head. So they put a clean turban on
his head and clothed them with garments. And the angel of the
Lord was standing by. Just a picture in one sense of
the glorious work of the gospel, which are sins and filthiness. Corrupt flesh and clothing is
removed and we're clothed in the righteousness of Christ But
you'll notice it's the staining of the filthy garments that comes
out in that verse there that we were looking at In verse 23
to others show mercy with fear hating even the garment stained
by the flesh now, this is interesting language show mercy with fear
and Now there are some people as you reach out to them, especially
if they are in this false teacher camp or who are really wrapped
up in it, you have to do that with a little bit of trepidation
knowing that you could be drawn away as well, as they're giving
you these supposedly strong arguments for their false teaching. So
that's how that could be rendered. To others, show mercy with fear,
or it's mercy with fear for God, hating even the garment stained
by the flesh. I can't stand this corruption
within this person and the fact that they're leading people astray.
So it's tough to know exactly which one. But the reality is
that you are reaching out to these people in some capacity,
whether it's through rebuke or through reaching out, trying
to save them. That is part of our perseverance in the faith.
So that first section, we persevere. That is how we contend for the
faith. We persevere. with the ways in
which God has made possible through building, through prayer, through
reaching out, through remembering. But this final verse here, 24
and 25, we see God's preservation. So we persevere, yet God preserves. And they concur, that means they're
happening at the same time. God is the primary cause, we
are secondary cause. where we're using and utilizing
the means that he has given to us to persevere, yet ultimately
God is the one doing this. This is a doxology that actually
forms a great inclusio, because we saw to those who are called,
who are beloved of God and kept by Jesus Christ, this letter
ends something similar, verse 24. Now to him who is able to
keep you from stumbling, to present you blameless before the presence
of his glory with great joy. Isn't that beautiful? To Him,
that is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. To Him, He is able. Notice, first with me, this power. He is able. Other doxologies
say something similar. Romans 16, now to Him who is
able to strengthen you according to my gospel. Ephesians 3, now
to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask
or think according to the power at work within us. What is He
able to do? to keep you from stumbling and
to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with
great joy. So two things, one negative,
he protects us, keeps us from stumbling. This sounds similar
to John 17 verse 12, while I was with them, Jesus says, I kept
them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded
them and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction
that the scripture might be fulfilled. He kept them. Why? Because they
are all the father gave him. He keeps them. So he protects
us negatively, but positively he presents us before him. He presents us before him, how
beautiful. Presents you blameless before
the presence of his glory with great joy. Now, if you have read
the Old Testament, you understand this language of presenting before
the presence of God something that's blameless, and that is
a sacrifice. Sacrifices must be spotless,
without any blemish, if they are going to be accepted by God.
Well, if you know yourself, you know that you have blemishes
and spots. So how is it possible that we
can be blameless before God? That is because the spotless,
blameless Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, died in our place. And by his work, he credits that
righteousness to us. And so that we, standing before
the presence of God in His glory, can have confidence that we too
are blameless because we're in Christ. Now, some people will
say, well, there's other ways you could read this, that He,
by the power of the Holy Spirit, is going to cleanse and purify
us to where we will stand before Him blameless. You could read
it that way. But according to the work of
Christ and what I see Him as the final sacrifice, that was
without spot or blame, as precious blood, First Peter calls it,
that we were ransomed by. I feel like Ephesians five backs
me up too. He might present the church to
himself in splendor without spot or wrinkle or any such thing
that she might be holy and without blemish. That was based on his
death, that he died for the church. So you have the negative side
of it, he's able, he protects us from stumbling, but also the
positive, he presents us before him. And we have this great conclusion
to the letter, we praise. So we persevere, God preserves,
and we praise. Verse 25, to the only God, our
Savior. To the only God, there is no
other God, and he is the only Savior. How did he save? It's through Jesus Christ, our
Lord. Yahweh saves through the Messiah,
who is our Lord. And he says, to God be glory. That is the fullness of his splendor
that often takes visible form. Think of it in the Old Testament,
the flames of fire and the trumpet sounds at the Mount. His glory,
but also his majesty. We think of the Lord Jesus on
the Mount of Transfiguration. His faith shined with glory. And they said we've seen the
majestic glory of the Lord and his dominion. That is the extension
of his reign and his authority before all time, now and forever. Just the right amount of praise
and glory given for His work on our behalf. We persevere,
yet it is Him who preserves us. So we're active, we're not passive
in this, but we ultimately give Him all the glory for keeping
us all the way to the end. And so that language used here,
beloved, beloved by God, know it, know it, that he predestined
you, that he called you in time, that he justified you, that he
adopted you, and now he's sanctifying you ultimately that you will
be glorified and when you see him face to face, we will be
like him. The glorious truth. Hopefully
you're being encouraged by this letter and strengthened and built
up. Let us pray to the Lord our God. Our Father, we pray that
you would strengthen us through this, that we would be more confident,
not in ourselves, but in the means that you've given to us,
that we might be built up, prayerful, waiting and hopeful in the revealing
of our Lord and Savior, knowing that you keep, you protect, you
guide, you lead, and you ultimately get the...
Jude 17-25: Persevere and Preservation
Series Jude
Join us Sundays at 10:15am and 5:00pm for sound biblical teaching, fellowship, and worship!
| Sermon ID | 11112408233611 |
| Duration | 25:52 |
| Date | |
| Category | Sunday Service |
| Language | English |
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